LA Times News

LA Times News

Israel urged to speak directly to Arab world

Posted: 26 Jun 2011 06:36 PM PDT

Israel's global public diplomacy campaign has long ignored the Arab world. But with recent political changes in the region, some say the Jewish state's future security may depend upon its ability to reach out to the Arab street.

Few countries are as active in courting international opinion as Israel.

Fighting rages in western Libya

Posted: 26 Jun 2011 06:36 PM PDT

Rebels clash with Kadafi's forces as NATO warplanes strike government positions near the rebel-controlled Nafusa Mountain range.

Rebels and forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi exchanged ferocious barrages of antiaircraft and machine-gun fire Sunday as NATO warplanes pounded government-held areas on the edge of the rebel-controlled Nafusa Mountain range, ending a relative lull in combat in western Libya.

China wrestles with food safety problems

Posted: 26 Jun 2011 05:35 PM PDT

From steroid-spiked pork to glow-in-the-dark meat to recycled cooking oil collected from sewers, a series of illnesses and scandals linked to tainted food has put officials on guard. But tougher measures have had little effect amid an official culture of secrecy.

It was a wedding the guests would never forget. Everybody of consequence in the village had been invited to a banquet to celebrate the marriage of the son of one of the wealthiest families. Fifty tables groaned under a lavish spread of dumplings, steamed chickens, pork ribs, meatballs, stir fries, all of it exceptionally delicious, guests would later recall.

Khmer Rouge trial fraught with drama in Cambodia

Posted: 26 Jun 2011 11:23 AM PDT

Four former Khmer Rouge leaders accused of genocide go on trial in Cambodia on Monday before a U.N.-backed tribunal amid charges of political meddling in the investigation of other cases.

As a U.N.-backed Cambodian tribunal opens Monday to try former Khmer Rouge leaders charged with genocide, critics accuse the Cambodian government of meddling and the United Nations of failing to uphold the court's independence.

Hiker finds bodies of 6 climbers in French Alps

Posted: 26 Jun 2011 09:50 AM PDT

A hiker has discovered the bodies of six mountain climbers in France's Hautes-Alpes region, the apparent victims of an accident a day earlier.

China frees political activist Hu Jia

Posted: 26 Jun 2011 03:32 AM PDT

Hu Jia advocated a broad range of civil liberties before he was imprisoned for sedition in 2008.

A prominent Chinese political activist imprisoned for sedition was released Sunday at the end of his more than three-year sentence, his wife said, though his freedom could be limited by continued surveillance.

Attackers in uniform add to anxiety in Afghanistan

Posted: 25 Jun 2011 10:38 PM PDT

Foreign troops say they're increasingly concerned about the 'enemy within,' as deadly assaults by men who appear to be police or soldiers become more frequent. But those Western personnel also stress the importance of keeping anxiety in check in a climate of deepening mutual distrust.

In late May, a NATO soldier was killed as he emerged from his tent. Two weeks earlier, two NATO soldiers were killed while eating a meal. In late April, eight U.S. troops were shot dead at a meeting at Kabul airport.

S. Korean errand men operate in shadows

Posted: 25 Jun 2011 10:38 PM PDT

Landlords, businessmen, and even a Seoul city office, are turning to so-called errand men, hired street muscle, to resolve property disputes the police won't, such as chasing away squatters or street vendors.

In South Korea, they're known as "errand men": hired street muscle who play often-violent mercenary roles in property disputes that law enforcement agencies refuse to handle.